Rural mailbox



Oct. 11, 1949.

D. F. M CULLAR RURAL MAILBOX 2 Shets-Sheet 1 Filed April 5, l946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 @a/viol 9m D. F. M CULLAR RURAL MAILBOX Oct. 11, 1949.

Filed April 5, 1946 Patented Oct. 11, 1949 UNITED STATES-PATENT OFFICE 2,484,718 RURAL MAILBOX David F. McCul lar, Townley, Ala.

Application April 3', 1946, Serial No. 659,385

This invention relates to a rural mail box which has as a main feature the saving of time of delivery and collection of mail by the mailman in rural districts. It is estimated that he would save from ten to twenty seconds in the service at each box or about one hour a day on each of his trips.

For instance, on a rural route with say, 360 mail boxes and a saving of ten seconds for each box, this would amount to a gain of one whole hour per day at a very low estimate.

Another advantage of my mail box tending to time-saving consists in the fact that no mixing up of pick-up mail with delivery mail is possible.

When serving the ordinary mail box on' rural routes, the carrier has all mail to bedelivered in his hand, when he drives up to the box. When picking up the mail to be dispatched in every case the carrier must first pick up the, dispatching mail before delivering mail to the box. Thus, there is loss of time changing mail from one hand to the other until the mail can be picked up.

With my invention, mail is first delivered and is out of the way. Mail to be picked up is held firmly in a receptacle on the door together with stamps, money or message for the carrier, and this operation is distinct and separate from delivery. The two transactions do not mix: therefore, less change for'erron' Thus, time is saved and confusion is eliminated, for the box automatically assists in attending to the business at hand. Each service is independent of the other.

One embodimentof my invention is illustrated in the drawings. wherein similar numerals indicate the same details in the different views.

Fi ure 1 is a view in side elevation of the rural mail box closed and flag up;

Fi ure 2 is a front elevation of Figure 1;

17 Claims. (Cl. 232-34) Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 withthe box o en and the flag down;

Fi ure 4 is a fragmentary section along line 4-4 of Fi ure 3 showing in detail the receptacle for outgoing mail;'

Figure 5 is a view in larger scale and vertical section along line 55 of Figure 6 showing the Leechanism for operating the door latch and the ag;

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken along line 6-6 of Figure 5;

Figure '7 is a top line 1-1 of Figure 5.

The mail box I 0 is rectangular, made preferably of sheet metal, and open only in front, which is closed by a door H which is hinged as at I? at the bottom of the box. Adjacent the mnge'the plan view'in section along door H is provided with an angle iron it across it to form a stop for outward swinging of the door. To lessen the thrust of the dropping door, one or more spring buffers I4 is provided under the bottom of the box in juxtaposition for said stop I 3. v

' The bottom of the box is also provided with suitable means, not shown, for securing it on an ordinary standard or other support as required. The door opening is of any desirable size, but a height of about 8 /2 inches is considered proper. The door has a tight fit between the sides, top and bottom of the box to make it watertight.

On the inner surface of the door H is provided a pocket 'or receptacle l5 intended for holding out-going mail and on top thereof a spring clip it which is bent crescent shaped as at l1 to aid the mailman in collecting the outgoing mail. A similar cutout may be provided in the receptacle l'5.

A latch member Hi to hold the door ll closed is provided on top of the mail box in a separate housing It containing the mechanism or working parts of my mail box. This housing which is a separate member, consists of a head anda base lea secured as by bolts 20 or the like On the flat narrow top 2| of the mail box ID. The latch member l8 has a hooked nose 22 at the end of a long straight arm 23 which sticks out through a narrow slit 24 cut in the front wall of the receptacle l9 so as to give a good hold on the top edge of the door ll. The latch member [8 is fulcrumed as at 26 in a standard 21 which is secured on the bottom 19a of the housing l9, as best seen in Figure 5. By means of a tension spring 28. held at 29 in the housing I9 the hoo ed nose 22 is constantly pushed down in enga ing position with the door II. The nose 22 is lifted off the door edge to be released, when the ctuating bar 6!! travels forward to contact with the bottom edge of arm 23.

Along the bottom of the housing I 9 is mounted to slide longitudinally an actuating member or carriage at, which for that purpose is slidable in guides or bearings 3| with caps 32 holding down said member. This carriage consists of two parallel shanks 33 preferably of round wire with the rear ends joined together by a rectangular arm 3 bent upwards from said shanks, while their front ends are joined to form a loop or carriage-pull 35 which protrudes forwardly beyond the front wall of the housing to provide a good finger-hold for operating the carriage 30.

The carriage is held back in its rearward position by a tension spring 36, the rear end of which is attached to a tension rod or regulating screw 31 secured at 38 in the rear wall of the housing [9 by the adjustment nut 38. The forward end of spring 36 is hooked on to a clevis 39, the arms of which form a V attached to the actuating bar 48 projecting upwardly from the shanks of the carriage 3B. The spring 36 will thus exert a pull on the carriage 353, to draw it to the rear until stopped by the transverse connecting bar 40 abutting the.standa11dsll'l. It will be evident that a compression spring with suitable attachments may be used instead of the spring 36.

The housing is preferabl made in two parts, namely, a hood l8 and a base [9a in order to iacil.-- itate assembling therein of the working parts. The carriage caps 32 may, for simpli'cityrsakegb'e formed as lugs on the hood l9,.so that when the hood l 9 is placed on the base lll'mthe caps'match with the bears 3 I, so that the hood with theicaps are all held down by screws 4|, six being here shown.

.A bifurcated standard. 42 is secured near the rearmost-bearing (ii-onthe bottom 19a for pivotallysupporlting as at tithe signal flagM, which extends some distance upwardlyabove the hood 19d through an opening 45 therein, and which is of .sufficient length. to: permit the ,full swing .of the flag from uprightv position to folded position as indicated in Figure .5 by full and dotted lines respectively. A continuation of said opening is shownat dB in the rear wall,.E-igure 5.

With the flag Min upright. position the forward swing of the same .limitedby its tail end at 41 abutting the arm. 34 of the carriage 35. The flag isthen rctainedin. the upright position by another tension spring ills held between a hook 49 on the flag M and an eye 59 secured on the cap 32. The hook 49. is so positioned in. front of pivot 43 so as to obtain. a leverage tending to throw the flag forward While raised but stopped bythe. arm 34., said. spring also exerting. a rearward leverage to hold the flag down whenv folded and limited by the stop ridge 5| furnished on. the top of the mail box.

In order to close the opening 45 in the hood 19 a lid or weather shield 52 is hinged .as at 53 on. top of the hood, and adapted to swing by the action of. gravity in the length direction of the mail box. It. becomes swung, into near-1y upright position, Figure 5, by raising the flag M and stopped by heel 5'! abutting the hood 1.9. on the forward side of the hinge 53... In its closed position, indicated by dotted lines in Figure .5, the shield is adapted to cover the opening d5 sufficiently to prevent rain, dust orsnow from collecting in the housing 19.. As a further-precaution and to lead offv any water or dampness that may be foundin the housing. L9,. the. same is provided with several vents. or. outlets 54 fordraining offwaten In order to aid in openmgthe door H in case it sticks in the mail box. a finger book 55 is pro- .vided-on the outside thereof.

All the main. parts of-the mail-box are made of sheet metal or possibly some suitable plastic, but the base or bottom .I so should preferably be made of cast metal and fairly thick. and heavy. Cast iron is considered most-suitable. The. springs are made of. rustless steel- When mail is to be. dispatched after it is placed within the box the owner of the box raises the flag at from its lowered posltionin Figure 3 to its upright position in. Figures 1 and 5. As a consequence the shield or weather. guard. 52 is automatically turned. up from its closed to its open 4 position by the action of the flag shank 44a contacting with the rear edge of the shield 52, as shown by the same figures. The raised positions of the flag 44 and the shield 52 are limited by the carriage arm 34 and the heel 51. If the flag is already raised and the mail box door closed, a pull on the carriage pull 35, will move the arm 34 forward and cause the flag 44 and the shield 52 to fall down again, and the nose 22 of the latch member wilPbe lifted byithe. cross bar 46, thereby releasing-thedoor I I, which is now free to swing open until stopped by the buffer l4 aided by the spring 58.

.An-y-mail to be sent is thereupon deposited in the receptacle I5 and under the spring It. A coiled ispringifiaapos'itioned at the corner of the door II and the bottom of the mail box Ill tends to swing the door open.

when Serving this rural mail box the mailman carries the mail in one hand ready for delivery when he 'drivesup to the box. With his other handhe then, manipulatesthe box to open it as just described and with the same hand removes lthemail from thereceptacle; l 5-on the open door. whereupon he deposits in the box. the mail he holds inlthe ,firSthand-and oloses the door with the aid of the finger hook 56. This done, bean-ow raises thefiag tosignal. the. owner. of the mailbox.

It is. to be understoodthat theinvention .as here disclosed is not limited to the details. here described and shown, but that the same maybe varied without departing. from the spirit of the invention as defined by the. sub'joined claims.

I1. Amail box "for rural districts, comprising a container open .at-one end, av door hinged to the container and. closing said, opening, mechanical means on top of said container including .a-l'a-tch member tending to hold said door in closedposi- 'tion, a pivoted signal element. on the container, a manually operated releasing device for said 'latchlmember, and means operating to shift the Signal. element from signaling to non-signaling position upon actuation of the latch releasing device.

.2. A mail box for rural districts, comprising a container open .at one end, ado0r-hingedto the container and adaptedto. close said openin mechanical means on top of said container irrcluding .a housing and .alatc h member partially enclosed in the housing and tending to hold said door in closedv position, a manually operated re leasingdevice for said latch member, and asignal member mounted-for oscillation in a vertical; longitudinal. plane of, said housmg on a pivot an. opening of. said housing, said releasing dewice having an abutment. portion for limiting such forward oscillation. and astop on said box for limiting rearward oscillation of the signal member. r

3. .A mail box, for rural districts, comprising a container open atone ends, a door hinged to the container and adapted to close said. opening, mechanical means on. tops-of said containe including a. housing and a latch memberpart ,v enclosed in thehousing and tending to hold door in closed position, a manually operated 're=- leasing device for said. latch member, a signal member mounted for oscillation: in vertical; longitudinal plane ot-sa-id' housing onapivot in an opening of said housing, said releasing device having an abutmentv portion for limiting such forward oscillation and; a stop on said box for limiting rearward oscillation or the signal, and yieldable elementfiorpositively holidlngssaiidsi gnal" member in extreme forward and rearward positions respectively.

4. A mail box for rural districts, comprising a container open at one end, a door hinged to the container and adapted to 'close said opening, mechanical means on top of said container including a housing and a-latch member partially enclosed in the housing and tending to hold said door in closed position, a manually operated releasing device for said latch member, a'signal member mounted for limited oscillation back and forth in an opening of said housing, and a-similarly mounted shield for said opening adapted for closing said opening and for actuation by said signal member to uncover the opening.

5. A mail box for rural districts, comprising a container open at one end, a door hinged to the container and adapted to close said openin mechanical means on top of said container including a housing and a latch member partially enclosed in the housing and tending to hold said door in closed position, and a manually operated releasing device for said latch member, said releasing device consisting of a carriage mounted for longitudinal travel in said housing, a spring element for holding the carriage retracted in neutral position, said carriage being provided with an actuating member adapted for lifting said latch member when the carriage is in forward position.

6. A door latching and signaling mechanism for a, rural mail box having a top wall and a door, comprising a housing adapted to be mounted upon the box top wall adjacent to the top of the door, a latch movably supported within the housing and having an end adapted to engage the top of the 3 door to secure the door in closed position, a member mounted for longitudinal reciprocation in the housing, means carried by the member to engage and actuate the latch to door releasing position upon movement of the member in one direction, means facilitating manual movement of the member in the said one direction, a signal element pivotally mounted on the housing, and cooperating means between the reciprocable member and. the signal for moving the signal from signaling to non-signaling position simultaneously with the actuation of the latch to door releasing position.

7. A mechanism of the character stated in claim 6, with resilient means normally urging movement of the latch to door securing position, and resilient means normally urging movement of the reciprocable member oppositely to the said one direction to permit movement of the latch by the resilient means engaged therewith.

8. A door latching and signaling mechanism of the character stated in claim 6, wherein said signal element comprises a flag and a shank, said shank having a portion below the pivotal mounting for the signal extended into the housing when the signal is in signaling position and constituting a part of the said cooperating means, the other part of the said cooperating means comprising an upstanding arm carried by the reciprocable member and forming a stop against which the end of said signal shank engages when the signal is in signaling position.

9. A door latching and signaling mechanism for a rural mail box having a top wall and a door, comprising a housing having a hood top provided with a longitudinal opening, the housing being adapted to be mounted upon the top wall of the mail box adjacent to the top of the mail box door, a latch movably supported within the housing and having an end adapted to engage the top-of the door-to secure the same in closed position, "a sliding carriage in the lower part of the housing, means carried by the carriage for engaging the latch to shift the latterto door releasing position upon forward movement of the carriage, means normally urging rearward movement of the carriage in the housing, a pivot support having its pivotal axis extending transversely of the opening of the hood top, a signal flag having a relatively long shank, said shank adjacent to its free end. being traversed by the pivot mounting for swinging movement of the flag in a vertical plane and longitudinally of the housing opening, the flag shank being disposed below the pivot and within the housing when the flag is in signaling position, and an upstanding arm carriedby the carriage and engaged upon its forward side by the said end of the shank when the carriage is in its rearmost position in the housing and the signal flag is raised.

10. A door latching and signaling mechanism of the character stated in claim 9, wherein said carriage has the forward end extended forwardly to the outside of the housing and beyond the latch to provide a manual means for grasping and shifting the carriage forwardly to effect the release of the latch.

11. A door latching and signaling mechanism of the character stated in claim 10, with means carried by the housing for closing the hood top opening when the signal flag is in non-signaling position.

12. A door latching and signaling mechanism of the character stated in claim 10, with a cover member pivotally supported upon the hood top of the housing in a position to swing into shielding relation over the opening in the hood top when the signal flag is swung to non-signaling position.

13. A door latching and signaling mechanism of the character stated in claim 10, with a cover member pivotally attached to the hood top forwardly of the opening therein and adapted to swing rearwardly and downwardly to cover said opening upon movement of the signal flag to nonsignaling position, said cover member and the shank of the signaling flag being operatively coupled whereby upon raising the signal flag to signaling position the cover will be swung upwardly from the hood top opening.

14. A mechanism of the character described for a rural mail box, comprising a housing having a hood top provided with a longitudinal opening, the housing being adapted to be mounted adjacent to the mail box, a sliding carriage in the lower part of the housing, means normally urging rearward movement of the carriage in the housing, a pivot support having its pivotal axis extending transversely of the opening of the hood top, a signal flag having a relatively long shank, said shank adjacent to its free end being traversed by the pivot mounting for swinging movement of the fla in a vertical plane and longitudinally of the housing opening, the flag shank being disposed below the pivot and within the housing when the flag is in signaling position, and an upstanding arm carried by the carriage and engaged upon its forward side by the said end of the shank when the carriage is in its rearmost position in the housing and the signal flag is raised.

15. A mechanism of the character stated in claim 14, with means carried by the housing for closing the hood top opening when the. signal flag is in non-signaling position.

j .16; A mechanism of the'character stated in claim 14, with acover member pivotally supported upon the hood top of the housing in a vposition to swing into shielding relation over the opening in 'athe hood top when the signal flag :is swung to non-signalingposition.

. 17,. A mechanism of the character stated in claim 14, with a cover member pivotal-1y attached to the hood top forwardly of the opening therein and adapted to swing rearwardly and downwardly to cover-(said opening upon movement of the signal flag to non-signaling position, said cover member and. the shank of the signaling flag being operatively coupled.- whereby upon raising the signal flag to signaling position the cover will be 15 swung upwardly from the hood top opening.

' DAVID F. McCULLAB.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 585,777 McEndree July '6, 1897 741,489 Hamilton-e12 a1 Oct. 13, 1903 823,585 Coulter June 19, I906 10 1,685,874 Feist Oct. 2, I928 2,068,275 Luss Jan. 19, 1 98'? 2,242,895 Roe May 20, I941 

